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Diffusion property following functional hemispherectomy in hemimegalencephaly.
1Department of Radiology, Graduate School of Medicine and Faculty of Medicine, University of Tokyo, Tokyo Japan. hmori-tky@umin.ac.jp
Acta Radiologica (Stockholm, Sweden : 1987)
|December 31, 2004
Summary
Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) revealed secondary degeneration in white matter neurofibers after hemispherectomy in an infant. Careful interpretation is needed when using DTI to assess infant brain development.
Area of Science:
- Neuroimaging
- Neuroscience
- Pediatric Neurology
Background:
- Refractory epilepsy in infants can be treated with functional hemispherectomy.
- Hemimegalencephaly is a rare congenital brain malformation.
- Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) analyzes white matter integrity non-invasively.
Observation:
- DTI was performed before and after hemispherectomy in an infant with epilepsy and hemimegalencephaly.
- The study aimed to assess changes in truncated neurofibers.
Findings:
- Post-surgery, anisotropy in the amputated pyramidal tract decreased compared to the unaffected side.
- This decrease indicates secondary degeneration of neurofibers.
Implications:
- DTI can detect post-surgical white matter changes in infants.
- Caution is advised when differentiating developmental changes from pathological changes in infant DTI studies.
- Standardization of DTI analysis for infant neurodevelopment is recommended.